In all likelihood, Azteca never would've had a major-label contract if it weren't for Santana, the trailblazing San Franciscan group that made Latin rhythms acceptable. Azteca had a stronger Latin bent than Santana, particularly on their eponymous 1972 debut that is dense with polyrhythms and horns, dipping occasionally into a Cinemascope presentation of saccharine emotions. That sentimentality and on-the-nose celebrations ("You Can't Take the Funk Out of Me"), along with a general hippie-dippy vibe, give the album a period-piece flavor but there is much to savor here, especially in how all involved enjoy playing with the groove, letting it breathe and expand, sometimes happy to let it ride upwards of seven minutes. Azteca is too undisciplined to be a minor gem but it's still charming: it envisions a world without borders and that's hard to resist even when it's not always well articulated. [BBR's 2013 expansion contains single versions of "Ain't Got No Special Woman" and "Mamita Linda" as bonus tracks.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine